Zette Harbour

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Core Values Mastery

Your Core Values are…

  1. Powerful sources of energy to carry you where you want to be
  2. An infallible decision-making resource
  3. Accurate forecasters of future results
  4. Not a checklist to measure your success or failure

Your Core Values are already pushing, either with you or against you. If you’ve experienced pressure, tension, and friction in your life or business, it’s because you aren’t taking your Core Values into consideration.

Mastery is about much more than knowing the names of your Core Values. Just like any relationship, the best results come from awareness, presence, understanding, and engagement. 

It can often feel like you’re at the mercy of the “what happens” in life. It’s especially jarring in those moments when you’re flowing along and suddenly you feel unseen forces pushing you where you don’t want to be. You don’t understand where these unwelcome currents are coming from and how to navigate away from them. Naturally, you want to get back into flow so you can experience the success you envision for yourself and those around you. 

Imagine this scene.

“You’re flanked by verdant, lush greenery beneath a canopy of azure sky. A veil of song from a chorus of tree frogs produces the original surround sound. The river upon which you’re floating is deep and winding. As your paddle dips into the water, you feel deeper forces propelling you. On a good day, the currents are flowing in exactly the direction you want to go. Other times, it feels like you’re paddling against a strong tide, exerting every ounce of energy you have just to stay in place.”

If only there was a way to understand and predict these forces and spend more time enjoying your travels.

There is and it’s all about mastering your Core Values. While the concept of values may seem like an intellectual exercise with limited roots in your daily experience, in fact, it’s one of the most essential foundational elements of leadership. 

If you’ve explored your values in the past, you may be accustomed to using them as a yardstick by which you measure your success or failure. Perhaps you’ve even asked yourself, “Did I live up to my values today?” 

Unfortunately, this perspective creates a sense of judgment and with it can come blame or shame. It’s using your values against yourself.

Core Values Mastery is all about understanding…

  • These sources within you are here to serve and support you. 
  • They’re here to create less struggle and more ease. 
  • They’re the keys to experiencing clarity of direction and the energy to move forward. 
  • Any friction or stress is actually a signal that you’re moving in a way that doesn’t enliven them. 

When you master your Core Values, they get to do what they’re designed to do. 

They make navigating the waters of your life easier.

Use this process to develop an effective relationship with your Core Values.

  1. Awareness: Name them
  2. Fluency: Clarify what they mean to you
  3. Immersion: Identify where they came from and how they’re affecting your life right now
  4. Actualization: Shift your orientation to them to create less struggle and more ease

As you do, you’re laying the foundation for a true and empowering partnership.

Give yourself plenty of time to go deep with the remaining guides. As you develop greater fluency with your core values, you’ll be creating a compass and a map that will show you where you are and where you want to be.

Once you’re able to identify which choices enliven your Core Values and which ones suppress them, your ride on the river of life will become smoother. In this way, you’ll enjoy greater fulfillment, success, and happiness.